Cyclists use stationary bicycle trainers for training due to inclement weather, time constraints, and convenience and to achieve specific athletic objectives, such as performing controlled drills to improve their cycling performance. Most commonly cyclists attach their own bicycle to a portable trainer; however, occasionally they may use a stationary bicycle.
Most existing bicycle trainers consist of an apparatus that attaches to the rear wheel of the cyclist's bicycle in order to apply resistance which can vary throughout the workout. Additionally, most often, the front wheel sits in a simple rest, or the front wheel is removed and the front fork of the bicycle is mounted to a component of the trainer in order to support the front of the bicycle, which remains stationary during the workout. Stationary bicycles use the same method of applying resistance to the rear wheel to vary the difficulty of the workout.
Many indoor bicycle manufacturers provide compatible software programs that incorporate “virtual reality” effects where the user views a rider on a screen in front of him and the resistance applied to the bicycle on the trainer increases as the rider on the screen approaches a hill. Some of the programs also incorporate a steering option for the rider to simulate cornering while viewing the rider on the screen cornering right or left. These virtual reality programs use an increase in resistance applied to the rear wheel to simulate the increasing workload of an uphill effort and a decrease in resistance to simulate the decreasing workload of downhill effort.
U.S. Pat. No. 5,279,529 (the '529 patent) uses existing torque or resistance generators (load generators) to increase and decrease workload resistances in simulating incline and decline riding. It describes a pedal platform apparatus that simulates uphill or downhill riding, and focuses on assisting with cycling while in the standing cycling position. The '529 patent also provides for changing pedal positioning.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,976,424 (the '424 patent) allows for adjustable incline and decline of the front wheel achieved by manually positioning the fork mount for the purpose of creating a ‘slight uphill’ position for the comfort of the cyclist. The '424 patent simulates uphill and downhill resistance by adjusting the force applied via a resistance generator. To maintain constant resistance, the front fork support described in U.S. Pat. No. 4,976,424 moves in response to the cyclist's shifting weight to keep the back wheel in contact with the resistance rollers.
U.S. Patent Publication. No. 2002/20107114 (the '114 publication) allows for automatic inclination and declination of the front of the trainer to simulate uphill and downhill riding. To achieve inclination and declination of the front of the trainer the '114 publication describes utilizes a telescoping frame of a stationary bike which in turn raises and lowers the pedal height position.
U.S. Pat. No. 7,303,510 (“the '510 patent) allows for automatic inclination and declination of the front wheel of a bicycle using an elevator assembly and a wheel support assembly that is operatively coupled to the elevator assembly. To achieve proper declination of the front wheel to simulate downhill orientation, the ′510 patent requires the use of elevation legs to support the bicycle some distance above the ground when in level orientation. In addition, the ′510 patent provides for the wheel support assembly to be modified to attach to the bicycle's front fork through the use of a fixedly attached cylinder approximating a wheel axle. By fixedly attaching the bicycle's front fork to the wheel support assembly the horizontal movement of the fork in relation to the elevator assembly is removed. Without this horizontal movement, the ability to raise or lower the front fork of the bicycle is negated.
While these references provide some features to enhance bicycle trainers, there is still room for improvement in bicycle training devices. For example, none of these approaches allow for the simulation of hill training addressing resistance, incline, decline, and body positioning. In addition, none of these approaches allows for the simulation of decline hill training and body positioning without the need for additional components to raise the bicycle off the ground.